Seafood Fest fueled up to 'go green'

One might call it a green-green situation at the Hampton Beach Seafood Festival this year.

Patrick Cronin

One might call it a green-green situation at the Hampton Beach Seafood Festival this year.

Chris Oliverio of Londonderry said he plans to take all the vegetable oil used by food vendors during the festival and recycle it to fuel his pickup truck.

The festival will run Sept. 5-7.

Jude David, chairwoman of the festival, said organizers were more than willing to give Oliverio the oil rather than dispose of it on their own.

"It's a win-win for everyone involved," David said. "He gets fuel for his car, and it's great for us because we are able to recycle it and put it to good use."

David said she had no idea how much oil would be produced, but there are at least 17 tables that have fried food on the menu.

Oliverio said he recently converted his diesel pickup to run on used vegetable oil to save money for the nonprofit organization for which he works.

Oliverio works for the state's Off Highway Vehicle Association as one of its safety coordinators and uses the truck to haul a safety-awareness trailer to teach youngsters the proper way to use an all-terrain vehicle.

"There is a display inside that teaches kids the proper body mechanics when riding a four-wheeler," Oliverio said. "There is also a ride inside for the kids that's fun, but also educational."

Oliverio said rising gas prices have cut down the number of trips the agency is able to make with the trailer.

"When I had a gas vehicle, I had to get reimbursed for mileage," Oliverio said. "With gas prices being the way they are, we couldn't do as many events as we would have liked to do."

Since converting his truck to run on vegetable oil, he's been able to bring the trailer to three times the number of events he would normally be able to go to, including a recent stop in Portsmouth.

Oliverio said it cost about $800 to $1,000 to convert his truck, which still has the capability to run on diesel gas.

"Now it's easier and more cost effective to bring the safety trailer to different events," Oliverio said.

Oliverio said he relies mostly on donated used vegetable oil from restaurants.

"If I can get the oil for free it costs only 20 cents per gallon to heat it up and filter it," said Oliverio, who does that at his house.

"Once you get the oil you have to filter out all the particles before you can use it."

Oliverio said he approached the Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce, which annually organizes the Seafood Festival, several months ago about the possibility of him coming in to haul off all the used vegetable oil at the festival.

"Last year we attended the Seafood Festival and saw all the used vegetable oil and I thought, 'Wow I can use that,'"‰" Oliverio said.

The chamber, he said, was more than willing to work with him.

"It's great because it's someone who is local using cooking oil to fuel his car for a good cause," David said.

David said it also fits in line with the festival's multi-year plan to turn the event completely "green" in the coming years.

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